


when all the stars align

by pleasydeasy



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/F, a very christmassy fic, kinda cliche but who cares
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-25
Updated: 2016-12-25
Packaged: 2018-09-12 01:58:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9050731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pleasydeasy/pseuds/pleasydeasy
Summary: Pansy has a crush on Hermione. Draco insists he is a helpful friend. (He's not.)





	

**Author's Note:**

> written for hp femslash secret santa 2016.

«Pansy?» Draco says, not looking up from his book. «What are you going to give me for Christmas?»

Pansy rolls her eyes. «23 years old and you still don’t understand the concept of a gift.»

Draco shrugs. «I just want to make sure it’s something I like.»

«Well, if it bothers you so much not knowing, you could just buy yourself a gift, and then I wouldn’t have to bother.»

«No, I want you to use money on me,» Draco says and looks up with a smirk. «That’s the whole meaning of Christmas.»

Pansy opens a bottle of nail polish and inspects her fingernails. «Knowledge about Christmas never has been your strong forte, has it?

«Ouch.» 

«Mhm.»

«Tell you what.» Draco puts down his book and leans forward. Pansy looks at him expectantly. «If you tell you what you’re giving me for Christmas, I will get Granger to go on a date with you.»

Pansy almost chokes on air. «You will  _what?_ »

Draco leans back again, a satisfied smile on his face. Pansy struggles to regain her pokerface. 

«I really don’t know why you think I would tell you what I’m giving you for Christmas in exchange for a date with Granger,» she says. 

«Please,» Draco scoffs. «It’s not like you haven’t had a painfully obvious crush on her for the past three months.»

«I have  _not_ -,»

Draco waves his hand, interrupting her. «Pans, there is literally no point in arguing. I know you well enough to be sure about this, whatever you plan on saying next.»

Pansy rolls her eyes. «Whatever.» 

«So?» Draco says. «Do we have a deal?»

« _No_ , we do not have a deal. If I wanted to go on a date with Granger, I would have been perfectly capable of asking her out myself.»

«Clearly not. It’s obvious that you want to, and yet here you are, on a Saturday evening, putting on nail polish.» Draco raises an eyebrow at her. 

«Why does it matter, Draco? She’s probably busy anyway,» she mumbles and carefully puts on a layer of nail polish over her middle fingernail. 

«She’s not, as a matter of fact,» Draco says and puts down his book. «Blaise told me that Ginny told him that the famous golden trio plus their usual company is going to a bar downtown tonight. Apparently Granger is dateless.»

Pansy looks up. «What about Weasley?»

Draco waves his hand dismissively. «Oh, they broke up months ago. I thought you knew that?»

«I did, I just thought they would eventually end up together.»

«Nope. Apparently they’re better off as friends. Boring and cliche, but I wouldn’t expect anything else.»

Pansy raises her eyebrows at him. «You are  _such_  a gossip.»

Draco shrugs. «Know thy enemy. Anyway, if we go now, we’ll be down there in five minutes. Just in time, I would think.»

«Draco, you know I’m not going to tell you what I’m getting you for Christmas, right?»

«Oh, I’ll find out.» He stands up. «Come on. We have a date to get you to.»

————

«It’s because you don’t think you deserve her,» Draco says. 

They’re on their way to the bar, walking because it’s too risky to apparate in this muggle neighborhood. 

«What?» Pansy says. 

«That’s why you haven’t talked to her yet.» Draco looks at her with an unusually thoughtful look. «You don’t think you deserve her because of all the things you’ve said and done in the past.»

She looks away. «We’re horrible people, you know.»

«It’s never too late to apologize.»

Pansy looks at him, incredulous. « _You_  are suggesting I apologize? You don’t do that.»

Draco rolls his eyes. «Of course I don’t. But it’s the only way you’ll have a chance.»

«So the fact that she probably deserves an apology is not part of the reason at all?»

«Pansy, you deserve happiness.»

«So does she.»

Draco scoffs. «You’ve gone soft.»

«And you’re an arsehole.»

He shrugs. «I’ll take that.»

————

The bar isn’t exactly Pansy’s style, but she has to admit it’s charming despite it’s obvious muggle-ness. It’s been decorated for Christmas, and some of the bartenders even wear those ridiculous Santa-something hats. 

It doesn’t take long to find Granger. Draco nudges Pansy and nods towards a table where she is in a deep conversation with Lovegood, sitting on a table with Potter, Weasley, Weaslette, Finnigan, Thomas and Longbottom. She smiles and pushes her hair behind her ear, and Pansy’s knees are suddenly very weak. 

She looks over to Draco, who’s staring at the party with a strange, unrecognizable look on his face.

«What now?» she asks him.

He shrugs. «Talk to her?»

Pansy puts her face in her hands. «You’re impossible. Terrible, awful, unhelpful, the  _worst_.»

«I thought this was your expert area.»

«I thought you said you were going to help me,» Pansy says and lifts her head to glare at Draco.

«I did! I gave you good advice, didn’t I?»

Pansy rubs her forehead. «I’m going to get a drink. Get us a table.»

«Yes sir.»

Consciously not looking over to Granger and the others, she walks over to the bar and waves at the bartender. 

«Two pints, please,» she says. 

The song they’re playing is vaguely familiar, definitely muggle, but good enough to make her admit that muggle aren’t absolutely terrible at everything they do. She almost remembers the title, but then a small cough behind her distracts her. 

She turns around and is face to face with Hermione Granger. 

It’s not that it’s been long since they’ve seen each other. They both work in the Ministry, different departments admittedly, but close enough to get a glimpse of each other every day, and be in a situation where they have to greet each other at least once every two weeks. 

This is entirely different. 

Pansy would rather die than admit this to anyone, but she finds Hermione Granger a little bit intimidating. During the war, she changed in a way Pansy can’t quite put her finger on, and ever since then she’s been different. 

«Hi, Parkinson,» she says. Not hostile, but not directly friendly, either. 

«Granger,» Pansy says. 

«What are you doing here?»

Pansy shrugs. «Getting a drink?»

Granger looks skeptical. «In a muggle bar?»

«How’ve you been, Granger?» Pansy says and sips her drink. 

«Good.»

«That’s nice. I’ve been good too, thanks for asking.»  _Sarcasm. Smooth move, Pansy._

Granger huffs. «Excuse me if I’m a little skeptical to you, after our history. It’s kind of hard to believe that  _you_ , of all people, want to small talk.»

Pansy sighs. «Yes, of course. Look, Granger.» She pauses, trying to find the right words. Granger looks expectantly at her. «What I— what we did in school, to you and your friends was… wrong. I’m sorry.»

Granger doesn’t look too impressed. Pansy tries again. 

«I shouldn’t have said the things I said, and I realize now that I was wrong about a lot of things.» She hesitates. «I wish… I could take it back?»

Finally, Granger decides to put her out of her misery. 

«It’s a long time ago, Parkinson. I accept your apology.»

Pansy sighs of relief.

«What about during the war?» Granger says then. «When you wanted to give Harry to Voldemort?»

There’s a pause. 

«I’m not sorry about that,» Pansy says eventually. «I wish it hadn’t happened that way, but I was trying to save lives. I don’t regret it.»

Granger holds her look for a couple of seconds. Then she nods. «Alright.»

«Alright.»

«So,» Granger says. «What have you been up to lately?»

Pansy smiles down in her drink. «Not much, really. Daphne got married, so I went to her wedding, which was nice, I suppose.»

«Greengrass?»

«That’s the one.»

«I didn’t know she got married. To who?»

«Oh, just some girl from France. Julienne.»

Granger looks surprised. «Oh? I didn’t know she was…»

«Gay? No, I suppose she wasn’t very open about it.»

«But isn’t she pureblood? Wouldn’t her parents want to decide who she marries?»

Pansy frowns. «Are you suggesting that our pureblood families aren’t supportive of same-sex relationships?»

«Well, yes,» Granger says and sips her drink. 

«We are supportive,» Pansy says. «As long as the person is pureblood and from a good family, we don’t care what gender they are.»

«Oh,» Granger says. «Well, I suppose that is…» 

Too late, Pansy realizes her mistake. 

«I—I mean, not all of us care about the whole blood thing. I, for one, barely have any contact with my family anymore, so I don’t think they would care who I…» She trails off. 

Granger looks skeptical. 

«Are you saying that you, Pansy Parkinson, don’t care whether the person you’re interested in, is pureblood or not?»

Pansy sighs. «It’s hard not to think that way when you’ve been raised the way Draco and I’ve been. But when I moved out a couple of years ago, I started realizing that the world isn’t exactly how my family has been describing it.» 

Granger looks thoughtful. «So what you’re saying is that you would, if you wanted to, marry a female muggleborn?»

In that moment, Pansy blesses her mother for spending hours teaching Pansy how to keep a perfect pokerface, and never blush. «Yes, I suppose I would.»

Granger smiles then, a tiny smiles that warms Pansy all the way through.

«So,» she says, «would you like to join us, then?»

Pansy raises an eyebrow. «I didn’t know you’d want me to.»

«Well, maybe it’s time to get over our silly childhood rivalry. We are adults now, after all.»

Pansy can’t help but smile a little. «Well, then. Oh, and is it alright if I bring Draco along?»

————

It’s a surprisingly pleasant evening, once they’re past the first few minutes of awkwardness. Pansy finds that Lovegood is especially interesting to talk to, and somehow, she gets into a debate with her and Granger on whether or not narkles really exist. It’s very entertaining, to Pansy’s surprise. 

Eventually, it gets late, and they all start to pack up and leave. She’s still in a discussion with Granger, even though Lovegood left the conversation along with the previous subject a while ago. 

«So what you’re saying,» Pansy says, «is that if you could go anywhere in the world, you would go to  _Norway_?» She shakes her head, disbelievingly. «I’m disappointed in you, Granger.»

«Norway is full of interesting magical creatures! And it’s not like your wish to go to  _America_  is so original either.»

«Well,» Pansy starts, but is interrupted by someone clearing their throat behind them. She looks around, confused, but Granger looks up, and her expression changes.

Pansy looks up as well, and—

Mistletoe. 

«Oh,» Granger says and looks down again. Her lips part softly and her eyes are wide. The entire bar seems to be silent. Pansy can literally feel her own heartbeat. 

«Oh,» Granger says again.

 _Fuck it,_  Pansy thinks, and kisses her. 

Granger makes a surprised sound, but then she puts on hand on Pansy’s cheek, and the other one on her waist. Pansy can’t think, can’t even breathe, all she can do is hold on to Granger and kiss her like it’s the last thing she’ll do. 

And then they part, and people are clapping and laughing and Granger is all wide eyes and red cheeks. 

Pansy clears her throat. «Would you like to do this again sometime?»

Granger smiles then, as wide as Pansy has ever seen her smile. «I thought you’d never ask.»

**Author's Note:**

> hope you enjoyed!


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